A Very Multi-Talented Girl
and the Young Woman She Became
Karen "attended" Jeanne's
Yamaha She always practiced
& was prepared for lessons |
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September
1977 - After 4 Weeks of Class Piano Lessons
(Tape recorded for Papa Frank & Grandma) The Program Star Spangled Banner - A Lad in Trinidad - The Big Band - Home on the Range - Clementine America the Beautiful Duet (Karen & Mom) - Battle Hymn of the Republic Duet (Karen & Mom) Ten Little Indians (in D) - Ten Little Indians (in A) - Row Row Your Boat (C & F#) - Frere Jacques (in G) - Frere Jacques (in E) Pop Goes the Weasel - On Top of Old Smokey - Country Gardens - Three Blind Mice When the Caissons go Rolling Along Duet (Karen & Mom) - Hail to the Chief Duet( Karen & Mom) Your're a Grand Old Flag - America the Beautiful - Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf - Heigh Ho Rockin Festival - Dixie - Whistle While You Work - Some Day My Prince Will Come |
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December
1977 From Bastien Level 2 Book |
Pat
White Recital "Mothers' Day" - May 1978 America 76 Duet - Karen & Mom Practice - 3 pieces - Karen Lively Dance (Gillock Level 3) On Roller Skates (Gillock Level 3) Village Dance (Gillock Level 3) Lucy Chu Recital - June 3, 1978 Lively Dance (Gillock Level 3) - Karen America 76 Double Duet (Karen & Patty Lee, Jon & Laura Chu) |
June
1978 Village Square (Bastien Level IV) |
Practice for
CSO Minuet Unit - October 1978 |
Upper Arlington
provided many sports opportunities for children
Karen participated in most of them Age 6 - her name had to be curved to fit on her basketball shirt At the "Labor Day Bike Race" she posed with the "first trophy in my whole life" This VIDEO was broadcast on TV local news and recorded on our new VCR You can see Karen winning the 1st race - (Google Drive) |
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Minuet
Symphony Unit - November 1978 |
Duets (Jeanne
and Karen) December 1978
- Practice Times
Square Dance (Rock with Jazz Book 3) Karen |
January 1979
- Karen (age 6) More
Practice (5 pieces) Little Brass Bugle (Recital Tidbits Book 2) Karen Duet (Karen & MOM) |
April 1979 - Karen
Karen (piano) Jeanne (Bass) Dance
of the Reed Flutes (Tchaikovsky) Pat White Recital (April 29,1979) |
Summer 1979 Practice - Karen Sonatina
3 mvts (Gillock) |
Summer 1979 Practice - Karen Studies & Etudes |
Overture Unit
- October 10, 1979 Sonatina
Opus 36 #1 Mvt 1 (Clementi) Patty
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Fall 1979 -
Pianorama at OSU 7 year old Karen was in Level 4 Pat White Recital
- November 18, 1979
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December 1979
Practice Competition
Pieces |
December 1979 Other
practice |
Karen
- a 7 year old of many talents - I remember this day in February
1980 She is dressed for swim practice and holding the prize that she and other students of Lucy Chu won at "Scale Olympics" She managed to practice her AMSA pieces too |
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Practice for Preliminaries of AMSA Competition Minuet in G Bach Practice 2 The rest of the practice was taped over by
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April
1980 Mrs Chu Instruction to Karen Alternating repeated practice for AMSA semifinals (Jeanne & Karen) Minuet in G (5 times) Prelude #4 (twice) The Clown (4 times) Sonata (once) |
After
AMSA - New Program Pieces - June 1980 Sonatina Opus 55 #3 (Kuhlau) Karen 3 pieces - Karen Theme from Beethoven's Fifth Hunting Song (Schumann) Sonatina - 3mvts (Clementi) |
Recital of Lucy
Chu - May 1980 |
Recital of Lucy Chu - May 1980 Karen & Patty
Lee (Duets or Duo Pianos?) |
Pat White Recital -
November 16, 1980 |
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Can't forget those
gymnastic classes |
And Ice Skating lessons
at OSU  |
A
Very Windy Performance in Downtown Columbus Karen & Mimi Lee (seated) Jeanne & Karen at keyboard Mom & Arts Council Lady holding down the music  |
Where Ice Show groups were determined by HEIGHT Not Age (1980-81)  |
April
1981 Practice Sonatina (Dussek) Practice continues F4B - 1981 " Now my little sister Karen will play … She's only 9 and she's just as good as me" Sonata op 49 #2 (Beethoven) |
April
1981 Practice Karen practicing just like Mrs Chu wanted Study with the metronome Then Sonatina Opus 20 #1 Kuhlau (with metronome) Followed by Sonatina Opus 20 #1 (same speed but NO metronome) Finally FULL SPEED Sonatina Opus 20 #1 (Kuhlau) |
May 1981 Practice
Karen
2 pieces Recital of Lucy
Chu - May 1981 42B Karen (Age 8) 46A |
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Summer 81 (Location?)
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September 1981 Practice Prelude
#8 (Bach) Karen |
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Music was important
in Upper Arlington 1982 - Karen - age 10, grade 5 Trumpet - Theme from Masterpiece Theater - Karen Trumpet
- Part of Theme from Masterpiece Theater - Karen Karen is holding her "Bundy" beginners trumpet She took such good care of it that 30 years later
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Summers
meant excellent swimming instruction Karen passed all levels through Jr Life Saving by age 8 and joined the UA winter swim program the "Golden Bears" - part of USS Swimming |
Upper
Arlington offered an organized softball league Karen was voted an "All Star" |
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In the Summer of 1982 Mrs Chu suggested that Karen study with Mrs Wasson also We were already driving the 80 miles to Dayton every Saturday for Jeanne's lesson Each had a lesson with Mrs Wasson while the other was in a group theory/repertoire class This activity took most of the day |
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Karen had to
balance Music with Sports Somehow she got everything done Wasson Recital
- Sept 26, 1982 Wasson Recital
- November 1982 Wasson Recital
- February 28, 1983 May 1983 - Practice Wasson Recital June 1983 |
The
Year is 1982-1983 and 10 year old Karen is playing her first
Concerto -
Concerto #21 (Mozart) |
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Tape E1 Concerto #21 (Mozart) - Karen Concerto
#21 (Mozart) Karen |
TAPE E12A & B Concerto
#21 (Mozart) Karen age 10 |
Assorted instruments
and piano pieces - |
Practice - Mozart
Concerto #21 with metronome |
By age 10 Karen
was also a veteran accompanist |
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could not have won THREE 1st place awards in the Columbus Symphony Competition without having her own accompanist in the house April 1981 - (Karen, age 8) Concerto for Flute Mvt 2 (Mozart) Concerto for Bass Mvt 1 (Capuzzi) Flute Recital - June 14, 1981 Pan (Don Juan) March 1982 Bass Concerto for Bass (Capuzzi) Pan - Flute (Don Juan) 1st of 3 Original Pieces for Flute (Belize) Romanze - Flute (Brun) Flute - Carnival of Venice - Jeanne November 1982 Capuzzi Bass Concerto Flute Recital - December 1982 Concerto in D (Mozart) Carnival of Venice Jeanne?? April 1983 Flute Concerto in D Major 2nd mvt (Mozart) |
December
1982 - Columbus Country Club |
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Karen performed many times with her sister Jeanne Audition
Tape for WBNS Talent Search They were chosen as one of the 12 Finalists This
is their performance at the Ohio State Fair
(In Columbus 1981 - 1983) |
Competition
Practice - March 1982 Sonata Opus 49 #2 (Beethoven) - twice - Karen Invention #8 (Bach) Karen Sonata Op 49 no2 (Beethoven) Karen Spring 1982 Prelude # 8 (Bach) & Sonata Opus 49 #2 (Beethoven) 2 Flute Pieces 1st of 3 original pieces for flute (DeLieb) Pan (Flute & Piano)( DonJon) Duets Hungarian Dance # 5 (Brahams) Boogie for 2 (Martin) |
Still Spring 82 - Bits and Pieces Sonata Opus 49 #2 (Beethoven) Karen's
Last Recital with Mrs Chu |
Time to add another instrument? Karen got a Guitar on her 10th Birthday - September 14, 1982 |
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Songs from St Andrews Folk Group
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EDIT St Andrews Talent Show - May 1982
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TAPE E12A -
Year 82-83? |
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Spring 1981
- Practice pieces (with intros) EDIT |
In August 1983 we moved to Northern Virginia Karen studied piano with Suzanne Guy The years 1983-1990 are still "in progress |
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These pictures from senior year while I organize other recordings and photos 1983-1990 & beyond
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  I CANNOT FIND A RECORDING OF THE ABOVE PROGRAM |
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Mrs Wasson was judging
in the DC area and attended Mrs Guy's recital in June 1984  |
NVMTA
1985 Concerto Competition Winners Mt Vernon Chamber Orchestra Concerto #19 in F Major - Mozart) Karen Backofen |
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Recital Reston Community Center - Oct 14, 1984 |
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Duo Recital
- April 14, 1985 Sheep
May Safely Graze (Duet) |
Duo Recital
- April 1985 (2nd tape recording) Sheep
May Safely Graze (Duet) |
Duo
Recital Portsmouth, VA - May 10, 1985 Jeanne? Karen?
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Duo
Recital - Bassett High School November 3, 1985 Martinsville, VA Sheep May Safely Graze (Bach) Duet Jeanne & Karen Backofen Prelude & Fugue in g sharp minor (WTC1) (Bach) Sonata in B flat major, Op. 22 (Beethoven) Allegro con brio Jeanne Backofen Nocturne in f minor, Op 55 #1 (Chopin) Ballade in g minor, op 118 #3 (Brahms) The Juggler (Toch) Karen Backofen Diabolic Suggestions (Prokofieff) Hungarian Rhapsody (Liszt) Jeanne Backofen Intermission Prelude & Fugue in g minor (WTC1) (Bach) Sonata in f minor Op 2 #1 (Beethoven) Allegro, Adagio, Menuetto, Presstissimo Part 1 - tape cuts off then - Part 2 Karen Backofen Rhapsody in b minor Op 79 #1 (Brahms) L'Isle Joyeuse (Debussy) Jeanne Backofen Laideronnette #13 Duet Imporatrice des Pagodes (Ravel) Jeanne & Karen Backofen |
Karen
- Mrs Guy Lesson - August 1985 General Discussion at start of lesson Brahms (Ballade, I think) Instruction on Brahms P1 & 2 Instruction on Brahms P3 Preface to Karen playing Debussy - MUST HEAR! Debussy - NEED ID Instruction on Debussy |
Karen
- Another Mrs Guy Lesson - August 1985 General Discussion at start of lesson Brahms (Ballade, I think) Instruction on Brahms General Discussion - what's coming up (Master Class - Library Recital) Debussy - NEED ID 30 minutes of detailed instruction on Debussy |
Unlikely I would have recorded a bunch of students if they weren't MINE |
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Reston Community Center Recital March 1986 Tape VA 13 (Either a 2nd recording of the Performance at left) |
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Practice - 1987 Nocturne in C# Minor (Chopin) Karen - (COPY) |
Recital
Suzanne Guy - May 1987 - Jeanne & Karen Student # 1 - Chopin - Etude in C minor, Op. 25 No. 12 "Ocean" Fantasie Impromptu - Student #2 Student # 3 - J.S. Bach - Italian Concerto, first movement Karen - Nocturne in C-sharp minor, Op. 27 No. 1 (Chopin) Karen - Nocturne in B-flat minor, Op. 9 No. 1 (Chopin) Student #6 Liszt - Concert Etude No. 3 in D-flat major, "Un Sospiro" Student #7 Chopin - Ballade No. 3 in A-flat major, Op. 47 Ballade in G minor Op 23 - Jeanne |
CANNOT FIND a RECORDING of THIS! May 31, 1989 Karen Backofen Suuggestion Diabolique Op 4 (Prokofieff) Capriccio in G minor Op 116 (Brahms) |
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VT Recital 1990 Duo Recital
Jeanne & Karen Official Recording - Part
1 - Part
2 |
Young
Woman of the Year 1990 - (Trimmed VIDEO)
Introduction of Contestants - Speech (Karen) - Talent (Karen) - Finalists |
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Karen
- Lesson with Mrs. Guy - Rachmaninoff 1991 - Orchestra
Part |
Karen - Master
Class ?? 3rd
Mvt after 1 Week Tape F8 (Side2) |
Performance of Winners of VMTA Concerto Competition Concerto #3 in c minor (Beethoven) - Karen 2nd copy of Beethoven Concerto Recital - April
10, 1994 Concerto
#2 in c minor Op 18 (Rachmaninoff) |
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